THE graft case against dismissed Mayor Alice Guo has been transferred from a court in Capas, Tarlac to a Valenzuela court, Senate Majority Leader Francis Tolentino announced on Friday.
The Capas, Tarlac Regional Trial Court Branch 109 had previously issued an arrest warrant against Guo for violating the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act. The case was filed by the Department of the Interior and Local Government, alleging that Guo used her position as mayor to issue a permit to an illegal Philippine Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) in Bamban, Tarlac.
However, Tolentino had previously argued that the Capas court lacked jurisdiction over the case and that the Senate should have custody of Guo. He cited a legal provision stating that cases against public officials should be tried in judicial regions “other than where the official holds office.”
Despite the transfer, Tolentino emphasized that the Senate’s arrest warrant against Guo, issued in July for her continuous refusal to attend Senate hearings, remains valid.
“I am stressing this to highlight again that as of today, the Senate’s warrant of arrest should be considered as the only valid warrant of arrest in existence today,” Tolentino said.
Guo was arrested in Indonesia on September 3 and was initially expected to be brought to the Senate detention facility. However, she was taken to the Philippine National Police Custodial Center in Camp Crame after the Capas court issued its warrant.
